Microsoft announces two new reasoning agents for deep research

Microsoft has unveiled two AI-driven reasoning agents—Researcher and Analyst—designed to enhance workplace productivity with deep research and analytical capabilities. These tools, built on OpenAI’s advanced models, are part of Microsoft 365 Copilot and aim to revolutionize how professionals conduct research and analyze data.

Microsoft’s latest advancements come just a week after Google also introduced Deep Research as part of its Gemini AI upgrades.

Researcher: AI-powered multi-step analysis

Researcher integrates OpenAI’s deep research model with Microsoft 365 Copilot’s search and orchestration tools to provide comprehensive insights. For instance, the AI agent can analyze a company’s internal work data—emails, meetings, files, and chats—alongside web-based information to generate high-quality research outputs.

Potential applications include:

• Developing detailed go-to-market strategies using internal and competitive data

• Identifying whitespace opportunities by analyzing trends and internal datasets

• Creating comprehensive quarterly client reports that integrate work history with market analysis.

• Additionally, Researcher can pull in external data from third-party platforms like Salesforce, ServiceNow, and Confluence, making it a powerful tool for businesses needing enriched insights from multiple sources.

Analyst: AI-driven data scientist at work

The Analyst agent, built on OpenAI’s o3-mini reasoning model, functions like a skilled data scientist. It uses chain-of-thought reasoning to iteratively refine its responses, making it a valuable asset for complex data queries. One of its key features is the ability to run Python scripts in real-time, allowing users to see and verify the underlying code.

Example use cases include:

• Converting raw spreadsheet data into demand forecasts

• Visualizing customer purchasing patterns

• Generating revenue projections based on multiple datasets

Both Researcher and Analyst will begin rolling out in April to Microsoft 365 Copilot users as part of the new “Frontier” program, which grants early access to emerging AI capabilities.

Microsoft is also expanding Copilot Studio with deep reasoning and agent flows, enabling businesses to create autonomous AI agents that can execute complex processes and automate workflows.

Security remains a top priority for the company which provides IT teams with a control system to govern AI usage and enforce enterprise data security policies.